Joshua Matheny is only a sophomore for the Upper St. Clair High School (Pittsburgh) swimming team, but he’s already making a name for himself in the pool.
Matheny set a new state record in the 100 yard breaststroke during the Pennsylvania AAA state championship meet, clocking an official time of 52.52. The time was also instantly good for third-best all-time according to the swimming website SwimSwam.
As it turns out, Matheny actually broke the 100 breast mark twice at the state meet, first topping the existing mark of 53.67 by three-hundredths of a second.
Breaking an all-time record twice at a single meet is notable in itself, but Matheny’s accomplishment was made more so by the swimmer whose time he topped to reach the top of the list: 6-time U.S. Olympian Brendan Hansen.
You can see Matheny’s dominant, record-setting performance below. Suffice to say, if he keeps progressing, he may very well reach some of the same heights Hansen has in his illustrious career.
